Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a wheel for a vehicle comprising a rim and a wheel center.
Discussion of Related Art
WO 2006/097856 A2 was published on Sep. 21, 2006 on behalf of Dymag Racing UK Ltd. and discloses a vehicle wheel that comprises a rim made from a plastic material and a spoke unit or wheel disk made from a metal. The spoke unit or wheel disk is connected to the rim by means of at least one connecting element that is guided through the rim base.
WO 2013/045618 A1 was published on Apr. 4, 2013 on behalf of Washi Kosan Co. Ltd. and discloses a wheel that comprises a rim made from a carbon fibers reinforced plastic and a wheel spider made from a metal alloy. According to the application, the wheel spider can be fastened to the rim by means of a clamping ring. The application shows an embodiment of a wheel where the clamping ring is arranged in the center of the wheel and is fastened to the wheel spider by means of screws, while clamping a portion of the rim well.
WO 2014/058313 A1 was published on Apr. 15, 2014 on behalf of Louis Huide-koper and shows a vehicle wheel with a rim and a wheel center made from two different materials. According to the document, the rim may be made from polymers reinforced with glass fibers, carbon fibers and others. The wheel center may be made from a metal. The rim comprises a circumferential edge at its radially inner side. The wheel center and edge comprise openings suited to receive connecting elements. The openings in the edge or the openings in the wheel center have a radially elongated shape, intended to reduce stress induced when materials with different coefficients of thermal expansion are heated.
For the wheels known from the prior art in general the junction between the wheel center and the rim turns out to be critical with respect to the durability of a wheel.